United Methodist hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo are escalating efforts to fight the epidemic of HIV/AIDS in Africa. One focus is educating women about the importance of HIV/AIDS testing.
“The lack of sufficient information to some women,” said Marcel Omelo, HIV/AIDS supervisor in East Congo, contributes to HIV transmission. He emphasized the need to educate both men and women “in order to prevent contamination and to save their families from its impacts, particularly from a socioeconomic point of view.”
As a first step, United Methodist hospitals in three cities — Bukavu, Goma and Uvira — are conducting awareness sessions. At the United Methodist Health Center in Irambo, for example, Dr. Damas Lushima provides monthly meetings to encourage women to take a more active role in combating the disease. One way is through voluntary testing for HIV, the virus that leads to AIDS.
According to UNAIDS, an international organization that has worked for AIDS prevention and treatment for 30 years, about 25.7 million people in Africa are living with HIV/AIDS, but deaths from the disease have plummeted in eastern and southern Africa, dropping by 62 percent since 2004, mostly due to an increase in availability of antiretroviral therapy in the region.
Baraka Citwali, a 26-year-old mother of two who lives in the Irambo neighborhood, attended an awareness session organized by the health center earlier this month. She encourages other women to do the screening so that they know their status.
Dr. Claude Watukalusu, the medical supervisor in the Kivu Annual Conference, commended the hospitals that offer the voluntary serology screening. “Women affected by HIV,” he said, “are vulnerable and require our particular attention as the church.”
In the South Kivu Province, the health zone supports the Uvira United Methodist Hospital’s care of people living with HIV. However, that care is limited to drug therapy, Watukalusu noted.
The United Methodist Church has a long and extensive presence in the DRC. For 16 years, the United Methodist Committee on Relief has had an office there, working primarily in the Katanga Province. One goal is to reduce the negative impact of HIV and AIDS.
The program targets both the general population and high-risk groups. Included in the country’s national strategic plan’s specific areas of action are preventing HIV transmission among vulnerable populations, improving access to antiretroviral treatment, and strengthening and expanding voluntary counseling and testing.
According to Dr. Richard Letshu, health coordinator in Congo, the response to HIV/AIDS involves several entities.
“First,” he said, “we want to raise awareness about voluntary testing of our communities. For the care of people living with HIV, we refer them to the centers that already have the treatment and follow-up program.”
In the future, he added, “our hospitals will organize these services to enable HIV patients to follow the entire program on site. It's just a matter of time.”
Kituka Lolonga is a communicator for the Kivu Annual Conference. News media contact: Vicki Brown, news editor, [email protected] or 615-742-5470. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free Daily or Weekly Digests.
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